Air Force Men’s Tennis With Historic Upset Over #65 New Mexico

USAF ACADEMY, Colo. - Air Force men's tennis upset #65 New Mexico 4-3 in a Mountain West home contest at the USAFA Indoor Tennis Courts Saturday morning. It was the first win over the Lobos in 20 years, snapping a 25-match losing streak. It was also the first win over a ranked opponent since 2013.

The Falcons took the doubles point and held a commanding 3-1 lead after winning two of the first three singles matches. New Mexico rallied back with two straight wins in singles to pull into a 3-3 tie.

Junior Jack Brown capped the match with a win at No. 6 over Nicolas Recoura to secure the first-ever MW conference match win over UNM. Air Force's last win over the Lobos came on April 29, 2005 at the MW Championship Tournament. Brown came back after dropping the first set 6-1. He rallied back by taking the second set 6-3 and clinched with a 6-4 third set.

After dropping the first doubles match at No. 3, Air Force rallied back with wins at 1 and 2 to take the point. Arjun Kersten and Jack Brown won at No. 1 over Daniil Kakhniuk and Nicolas Recoura 6-4. Phillip Deaton and Tyler Leaird then defeated Aditya Balsekar and Avery Tallakson 7-6, winning the tiebreaker 7-3 to clinch the doubles point.

In singles, New Mexico tied it up with a win at No. 2. AJ Moore then won at No. 3 over Georgia Samaha, coming back for a 1-6, 6-1, 6-3 win to put the Falcons back ahead 2-1. Deaton then won at No. 1 over Balsekar in three sets, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 to put Air Force ahead 3-1.

New Mexico began to gain momentum with a win at No. 4. Alec Fritzinger had a chance to win the match, but could not break the 6-6 tie in the second set, allowing Kakniuk to rally to a 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2 win. The Lobos then tied the match up with a win at No. 5.

The game came down to No. 6 singles match between Brown and Recoura. Brown responded with win to lift the Falcons to 10-8 on the season and 1-1 in MW play. Air Force defeated its first ranked opponent since a 4-3 win over #49 BYU on Jan. 31, 2013.

Head coach Evan Urbina recapping the match:
"What a huge day for the program. Jack Brown with ice in his veins as the last match on. It was another 3-3 clinch for him. I'm so proud of his work ethic and attitude every day in practice. He trusted himself and hit his shots in the pressure moments today. The doubles point was huge. Phil and Tyler saved match points to clinch the doubles point. The team stepped up. I'm so proud and happy for the guys and I think we'll take the rest of the weekend to enjoy it and then turn our attention to UNLV and SDSU for our final home matches next week."

Air Force returns to action Friday, April 11, hosting UNLV.

#65 New Mexico vs. Air Force Results
Singles
1. Phillip Deaton (AF) def. Aditya Balsekar (NM) 6-2, 3-6, 6-4
2. Dario Ciobotaru (NM) def. Arjun Kersten (AF) 6-4, 6-2
3. AJ Moore (AF) def. Georgio Samaha (NM) 1-6, 6-1, 6-3
4. Daniil Kakhniuk (NM) def. Alec Fritzinger (AF) 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2
5. Avery Tallakson (NM) def. Matthew Staton (AF) 6-4, 6-2
6. Jack Brown (AF) def. Nicolas Recoura (NM) 1-6, 6-3, 6-4
Order: 2, 3, 1 ,4, 5, 6

Doubles competition
1. Arjun Kersten/Jack Brown (AF) def. Daniil Kakhniuk/Nicolas Recoura (NM) 6-4
2. Phillip Deaton/Tyler Leaird (AF) def. Aditya Balsekar/Avery Tallakson (NM) 7-6 (7-3)
3. Georgio Samaha/Dario Ciobotaru (NM) def. AJ Moore/Langdon Tingleaf (AF) 6-1
Order: 3, 1, 2

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